Falling Stars
by joestej
Summary: Fed up with contracting powerful mercenary groups to do their dirty work, the United Nations field their own special response group: ComStar. But can this ComStar and the strange new technology they bring to the table really be trusted, or do they have their own sinister motives? Life as a high-tech submarine captain just got a lot more interesting...
1. Chapter 1

_Been in a bit of a rut for a bit, so I flipped over an old idea I had just to see what would happen. Frankly, I'm kind of 'meh' about how it turned out, getting canon characters' voices right is always something I found hard, but hopefully you will enjoy it! _

_This story is set post Second Raid, and I've never read the light novels, so don't expect me to play by the book with where this goes. And before you ask, no time travel is involved. This is a concept crossover only. _

* * *

"This is Urzu 2! The situation over here is totally FUBAR! Where the hell did these guys come from?"

"When I find out, I'll let you know," replied Sargent Kurtz Weber. "All these buildings are blocking my sight lines, I can't get a good shot. Damn it, we were sent in for riot control, not urban AS combat!"

"I've counted at least six Savages," the calm voice of Sargent Sousuke Sagara announced. Something exploded in the background. "Make that five."

"Urzu 1 to all units. Fall back to Point Gamma to regroup. De Danaan is launching a UAV to survey the battlefield and get a count on the enemy," Lieutenant Belfangan Clouseau ordered, the interference causing his voice to scratch and stretch. "We can redeploy from there."

"Rodger," Kurtz heard Sousuke reply.

"Rodger," Sergant Major Melissa Mao echoed. "Heading there now."

"Urzu 6, rodger," Kurtz replied, pulling his AS up from its prone position and turning toward the rendezvous point. As he did, his eyes widened when he realized that he had almost walked right into an enemy Savage that had been attempting to flank him.

"Shit!" he yelled, bringing his rifle up, but he knew it was no good.

The twisting, crowded streets of Ahmedabad had provided the Savage perfect cover, and the unexpected ECM jamming the enemy was putting out had allowed it to get too close. Even with the M-9's speed, there was no way he would beat it to the punch. He yanked the controls, trying to throw his AS to the side. With luck, the Savage would only be able to take off his arm, and then-

BLAM!

The Savage exploded, its entire torso completely torn apart by a massive impact. Kurtz rolled his AS back to its feet, scanning for whatever had taken out the Savage. The rest of his team was still scattered across the city, so who could have…there!

He zoomed in on the figure stomping through the streets toward him, and gaped. It was like an AS, but was definitely not any AS Kurtz had ever seen. It was a humanoid vehicle, a meter or so taller than his M-9. But where his M-9 was sleek, this thing was bulky. It was built like a tank, with massive armor plates over every surface and a ponderous gait that shook the street with every step.

Its head was nothing but a sloped box, and it arms lacked any but the most basic articulation. They didn't appear to need it, because it didn't carry a weapon. Instead, a massive short-barrel cannon was built into the thing's right shoulder, bigger than any gun Kurtz had ever seen. Under each arm was a lensed device that he guessed to be either cameras or targeting lasers. A smaller one perched just to the left of the hulking AS's head.

The mystery AS strode through the wreckage of the Savage as though it wasn't there, crushing a severed arm under one of its huge feet before its torso rotated, spinning ninety degrees like a tank turret to focus all its attention on where Kurtz's AS stood frozen.

"You alright over there, pretty boy?" a voice called over the radio, and even through the ECM static, Kurtz thought he detected a slight German accent.

"Fine, thanks," he replied, still slightly surprised. "Who the hell are you?"

"We're with the UN," the mystery pilot replied, and Kurtz noticed that the interference had suddenly begun to lessen. "Heard you all ran into some unexpected problems, so Command ordered us in to give you a hand."

"We?" Kurtz asked, just as another strange vehicle soared over his head to perch atop a nearby building.

This one was small and sleek, but didn't even resemble an AS. From the legs down, it almost seemed like an M-9: long, slender legs for dashing and dodging. But the rest of it… It didn't have arms, a head, or even a real torso. A rounded, narrow cockpit jutted forward from its body, while a pair of rectangular 'wings' sprouted from its side, each housing several more of the lensed targeting equipment. Glowing thrusters protruded slightly from its rear, and a row of missiles laid flat atop its sleek form. Several antenna waved in the air, and caused Kurtz to suspect this machine was responsible for the sudden lack of interference.

"Picking up strays now, Blue Three?" a new voice, female this time, called as the small walker turned to face them. He noticed with some puzzlement that this voice sounded Chinese.

"Just being a good Samaritan, Eyes," the first man responded. "How about you? I thought you were supposed to be scouting?"

"Spoofing around for those jammers," she explained, and the rounded cockpit of her walker rotated to point in another direction. "And there's one now."

Kurtz gasped as the lenses he had taken for targeting equipment flared and spat out glowing streams of energy that stabbed deep into a nearby building. The lasers burned straight through the building's wall and into the interior, before shutting off abruptly and leaving only scorched holes behind.

"There. That should clear this sector. I'll leave the rest up to you guys," the voice said, satisfied. The small machine turned away and its thrusters fired, carrying it into the air to land on a rooftop several hundred feet away. It took a few steps and then jumped again, bouncing off out of sight.

"Urzu 6, the jamming has stopped, and I'm reading an unknown AS at your position. Are you okay?" Mao's voice called, this time without a trace of static. "Kurtz, answer me!"

"I'm fine," he replied, watching the strange burly AS stomp off into the city without another word. "But you are not going to believe what I just saw."

"Try me, Weber," Clouseau stated, and a small window labeled 'Live Feed' appeared in Kurtz's HUD.

In it, he saw a massive bird-like walker, at least twelve meters tall or more, slowly jumping up to the top of a building with more of those jets. The building visibly shifted under its weight, but the machine's pilot seemed unconcerned. The torso spun, and the two large boxes the walker mounted on its 'shoulders' popped open to reveal rows upon rows of missiles. It fired, the missiles swarming off into the sky with a roar. The missile pods closed themselves again, and the walker calmly stomped its way right off the edge of the building, its jets catching it and letting it slowly drift out of sight.

In the distance, Kurtz could see the missiles streaking up from near their designated rendezvous point, burning white trails through the sky as they flew over the city. Without warning, the cloud of projectiles turned instantly, dropping toward the ground in a lethal rain. Though he couldn't see their target, he could feel the resulting explosion as it shook the nearby buildings.

"Fire support units too?" he questioned, even as several other missiles began rising from other areas of the city, filling his HUD with contacts. "Who the hell are these guys?"

"Their vehicles have UN insignias on them, but Al couldn't find any matches for their IFF in his database," Sousuke reported, infuriatingly professional as always. "They could be a mercenary faction, like Mithril."

"Man, I just saw one of these things drill into a building with goddamned scifi lasers!" Kurtz frowned as he turned his AS and began leaping toward the rest of his team. "Where the hell would mercenaries get that kind of technology?"

"Kurtz, Mithril and Amalgam both routinely deploy ASes equipped with Lamda Drivers."

"…point. But still!"

"I've found their communications network," Mao announced. "For such weird gear, they really need to learn to lock down their radio chatter. Patching you all in."

"_Lead, this is Blue Lance. We've reached Nav Point Alpha, and are standing by for more instructions."_

"_Hold position, Blue Lance. Eyes, what's the status on the enemy ECM?"_

"_Almost done, Lead. ECCM is keeping me clear, and I'm enroute to the last generator. ETA two minutes."_

"_Red Lance reporting, Lead. We're at Nav Point Delta. Only light resistance encountered, no serious damage."_

"_Excellent. Hold that position and wait for my signal."_

"_Rodger, setting up a defensive perimeter."_

"_White Lance, Mother Goose is going to be paying us a visit in about two minutes. Please tell me you have the LZ secured?"_

"_Locked tight, Lead. Mother Goose is all clear."_

"_Lead, this is Eyes. I'm getting a faint echo on this line. There is a possibility it's been compromised. I'm running a trace now."_

"Shit!" Mao cursed.

"_What do you have for me, Eyes?"_

"_The trace keeps getting lost in that ECM pocket Red Lance was talking about. Either it's Mithril or they're using them to block me."_

"_Forget it then. How about that hostile ECM?"_

"_Cleaned it while the trace was running. Battlefield's clear."_

"Kill the connection, Urzu 2," Clouseau ordered. "We're heading for the extraction point."

"But what about our mission?" Kurtz complained as his M-9 slid around a corner, revealing the rest of the SRT team's AS's waiting for him in defensive crouches.

"We don't have a choice. The UN is formally requesting that Mithril remove its forces from the city. They've transferred this contract to an internal division. Some group called ComStar."

"ComStar? Sounds like a freaking cellphone provider. And since when have we ever cared what those windbags at the UN want?" Mao snapped with a derisive snort. "Tell those politicians to shove it!"

"No," Clouseau snapped curtly. "This is straight from the captain. We're pulling out. This is ComStar's problem now."

"Fine," Mao agreed sullenly, directing her AS to its feet. Suddenly, the sky itself began glowing, yellow light scorching through the clouds. "What the-"

A titanic craft, almost eighty meters tall, broke through the clouds, its thrusters making a roar like thunder. It was spherical, with several huge landing struts coming off of the bottom and a massive collection of thrusters located in the bottom. The ship began to carefully descend outside of the city, the blast from its jets instantly torching everything below it.

"An orbital military transport…" Sousake muttered with awe. "Who the hell are these guys?"

"I have no idea," Clouseau stated darkly. "But I have a feeling that we'll be seeing a lot more of them in the near future."


	2. Chapter 2

Captain Teletha "Tessa" Testarossa took her seat quickly took her seat at the holographic conference table, almost tripping over her own feet in her haste. That would have been horrible. She was already late, and the General Council didn't need another reason to think she should be back in R&amp;D instead of running field operations. The holographic image of Admiral Borda smiled slightly as the cameras built into the chair began transmitting her image. He'd been a friend of her family for a long time, and was the main reason she'd been given command of the _Tuatha de Danaan_ in the first place. She smiled back as subtly as she could.

"Now that we're all here," Lord Mallory began in a voice that contained more amusement than condemnation, "we can begin. So. What has Mithril's Intelligence Department learned about this new organization?"

"They're called ComStar," General Amit replied flatly, frowning. "They're a division of the UN, created twenty years ago with the stated purpose of launching and maintaining a network of advanced communication satellites, as well as assisting various scientific groups with their research. ComStar was just supposed to be a nationally neutral group that facilitated international communication and data transfer."

"Great. So where do the giant robots come in?" Borda cut in angrily, narrowing his eyes. He and Amit has always had a frictional relationship, and the recent problems in Hong Kong hadn't helped.

"I was getting to that," Amit said, annoyance creeping into his tone. "It would appear that shortly after its creation, ComStar began developing advanced technology to facilitate its stellar construction projects. Superior thrusters for escape and recovery vehicles. Lasers for cutting metal in a vacuum. Armor for surviving atmospheric reentry and impact with stellar debris. Transmitters for boosting or jamming signals. By the time the second generation of Arm Slaves began seeing deployment, they already had working laser weapons and large trans-orbital cargo haulers."

"They had the weapons and the delivery vehicles. They just needed a way to mount their new technology," Dr. Painrose, the head of Mithril's Research Division mused. "Their platforms do bear a crude resemblance to the first and second generation Arm Slaves in their construction."

"Apparently it started as a thought exercise," agreed Amit. "Some of their engineers took the schematics for an M6 and started making hypothetical upgrades. When their superiors discovered them, they decided the designs might actually work and started building actual prototypes."

"The scale of their vehicles is immense, even by our standards. How did they afford such things?" Mallory wondered.

"Easily. They've got at least a dozen contracts with communication providers, and apparently they've got patents on a lot of the newest telecommunication technology. They even have a space station."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Borda swore, causing Tessa to jump in surprise. "How the hell did those bastards build a damn space station without anyone knowing? What do we even pay you Intelligence people for?"

"Admiral, that is enough. Placing blame would be pointless at this stage," Lord Mallory admonished, and Borda actually looked somewhat sheepish. "Your point is still a valid one, however. General, how could such a large construction project go unnoticed for so long?"

"Simply put, we had no reason to look for it," he replied with a small shrug. "After the Apollo Program ended, the public largely lost interest in space. Groups like NASA, the ESA, and the USSR's space program fell out of favor. Even now, space programs don't count for a single percent of most nations' budgets. Everyone was happy to hand the reins over to ComStar if it meant they could look good but didn't have to pay for it. The Mir Station, the Hubble Telescope…it was cheaper to let ComStar build, staff, and maintain them than to do it themselves.

"We all had spy satellites, of course, and ComStar couldn't meddle with those. But they were looking down. The only people who were actually looking up were astronomers, and almost all of their most advanced equipment was designed and built by ComStar. Their station is on the far side of the moon, so it can't be seen with telescopes. Any strange signals or readings were reported as technical difficulties, which they then 'repaired.'"

"Clever. But now that we know where they came from, the next question is simple," Malory said calmly. "What do they want?"

"The answer to that one is more complex. Officially, they've been tasked with providing rapid response and heavy support to UN Peacekeeping forces. Unofficially, they're much closer to the UN's private army. In UN Peacekeeping forces, the soldiers are seconded to the UN and technically remain in the service of their respective nations. In ComStar, soldiers have allegiance to ComStar only. They don't recruit anyone currently in active military service."

"How exactly do they recruit?" Borda asked, leaning forward. "I assume it's something similar to what we do?"

"Sort of," the general agreed. "ComStar isn't a mercenary organization, and their headhunting process focuses a lot on scouting and testing new talent before they officially approach anyone. They claim to focus on ethical standards, but we all know how hard it is to select individuals based on something as flexible as that."

"Still, our status as a mercenary organization does create something of a conflict of interest for many of our personnel," the monocled old man mused. "Increased emphasis on ethics might have prevented our recent difficulties in Hong Kong and on the _Tuatha de Danaan_. Captain Testarossa, as the ranking officer for both of those crises, what is your opinion on the subject?"

The Council turned their gazes toward her expectantly, and Tessa shifted her face into a professional mask.

"We have had problems with traitors in the past, and I can't speak for the personnel in other battle groups," she began calmly. "But I have always held my subordinates to the highest professional and moral standards, and they have almost never disappointed me. Even when several members of our SRT teams have been compromised, the others have always gone above and beyond their normal duties to prevent any further damage."

"So it is your professional opinion that Mithril currently maintains the highest ethical standards in its operations that can reasonably be expected?"

She paused for a moment to think. Mithril's methods were sometimes extremely harsh, and she'd seen the dirty side of their work first hand. She'd also been on the receiving end of two separate betrayals, both of which had almost killed the people she cared about most. She knew Mithril was flawed. But its goals were noble. She hated that they sometimes resorted to things like torture and strikes on civilian targets. In a perfect world, they wouldn't even need to be mercenaries. But the money had to come from somewhere, and with the stakes this high Mithril couldn't afford to be squeamish.

"I believe that it is, yes."

"It is encouraging to see such faith, especially after everything you and your subordinates have gone through recently," Mallory said with a smile. "Very well, let us return to the issue at hand. General Amit, if you would continue?"

"Certainly," he agreed, and Tessa suspected from his tone that the sudden tangent had greatly annoyed him. "ComStar seems to be purposely designed to fix the problems UN Peacekeeping forces have been encountering for the past decade. The Peacekeepers didn't have any kind of standing force, so it would take months for them to put together even a small group for deployment. Even then they're only made up of what nations will willingly donate, so they tend to be poor quality troops from minor powers.

"Their supply lines have always been drowned in red tape and their response time is abysmal. Until now, the UN's never had any kind of intelligence agency, so they almost always went in blind. They've also had numerous reports of ethical violations over the years, likely a result of the poor quality of their soldiers. Their equipment is extremely outdated, consisting of second generation Arm Slaves and other leftovers donated from nations like India and Egypt."

"If they weren't so bad at their jobs, we'd probably be out of work," Borda agreed dryly. "But we've known that for years. Get to the point."

"The context is important, Admiral. Virtually every one of the points I just listed are things ComStar seems to excel at," Amit snapped angrily. "They've got a large standing force, and since they deploy from orbit, they can have boots on the ground within hours of being given orders to mobilize. From the limited personnel lists we've been able to get, most of their troops are veterans from different world powers. Russian, German, British, Chinese, American… it's a long list, and they aren't hiring rejects. Honorable discharges only. Looks like they're mostly focusing on tank commanders and AS pilots, with some fighter pilots thrown in."

"Makes sense for their technology. Due to their decreased speed and maneuverability, their platforms will behave much more like tanks than they will a traditional Arm Slave," put in Painrose. "They likely want the fighter pilots to operate their dropships, though I'm not sure why they bother. At that size, it's more like a guided rocket than an actual spacecraft."

"Fascinating, but not relevant," growled Amit. "As I was saying, ComStar's orbital capabilities also solve many supply problems. So long as they can keep the sky clear, they can drop as much as they need directly from orbit. Their control of space also gives them a powerful intelligence advantage. They likely have as many spy satellites as we do, if not more. They also have a conventional intelligence agency, known as ROM. They're very secretive. We haven't even been able to figure out what ROM stands for."

"Wonderful. So how much do they know about us?" Borda asked.

"More than we'd like. From the transmission the SRT team was able to compromise in Ahmedabad, they know enough to recognize our units and capabilities on sight. It's a disturbing situation. We've been letting far too many details about our organization slip through the cracks."

"The only way to stop that kind of information leakage would be to limit our involvement in global affairs, something I am unwilling to consider," Lord Mallory pronounced firmly. "It is an acceptable loss."

"Acceptable or not, it makes us vulnerable to groups like Amalgam and this ComStar," Amit reminded darkly, before continuing onward. "I can't speak for their ethics, but considering the emphasis they're placing on it in their PR, we can at least expect them to be on their best behavior for the next year or so. And as we've already seen, their equipment is completely unique and likely cutting edge. Frankly, the only thing they have in common with normal UN Peacekeepers is that they both answer to the UN Security Council."

"Which brings us to our next topic," stated Mallory. "Doctor Painrose, exactly how advanced are their new machines?"

"An interesting question. According to one of their press releases, ComStar's new machines are called Battlemechs. Colloquially, they're known as Mechs. These 'Mechs' are simultaneously more and less advanced than our own units," the doctor began. "The most obvious advantage they have would be their laser weaponry. Lasers allow them to make precisions strikes that are extremely difficult to avoid. As maneuverable as our M9s are, they still can't dodge something that moves at the speed of light. At the same time, their lasers have two major weak points. First, they have to remain on target to deal significant damage. It takes a little while for them to burn through thicker armor. As for the second, look at this."

A holographic image appeared in the center of the table, showing one of ComStar's huge war machines. It looked vaguely humanoid, but its right arm ended in a huge cannon while its left terminated in a mechanical claw. Its boxy torso jutted forward like the nose of an aircraft, and Tessa could see at least ten missile tubes mounted inside. She also spotted laser mounts on its left forearm and shoulder. As she watched, the image began moving, stomping forward a few steps before unleashing a missile barrage at a target off screen. A strike from its lasers followed, and the video froze.

"That was recorded by one of the UAV drones Captain Testarossa deployed in Ahmedabad. According to the documents the UN released, this particular platform is called a Dragon. Now, let's see what the thermal cameras captured."

The recording reset to the beginning, but this time in the murky black and white of thermal vision. Tessa noticed immediately that the ComStar vehicle was already much warmer than its surroundings. It glowed faintly, and its torso shone white with heat. Presumably, these things ran considerably hotter than the palladium reactors that powered the M9. It fired its missiles again, and the video immediately washed out as the glowing missile exhaust filled the screen. When the haze cleared, her eyes widened. The Dragon was practically blazing with light. The missile ports and lasers were pure white, but the glow she'd guessed as its reactor was just as bad. For it to be that bright, even through all those layers of armor, it had to be incredibly hot!

"It can't regulate its own heat!" she exclaimed.

"Correct." Painrose smiled, an expression Tessa remembered vividly from her time with R&amp;D. It was the sort of smile professors usually reserved for especially promising students. "Their reactors are capable of fantastic energy output, as evidenced by their impressive energy weapons. But as a result, they seem to emit proportional levels of heat. Current estimates place the cockpit temperature at over forty degrees Celsius after that strike. That would be over one hundred four degrees Fahrenheit for you, Admiral."

"I can convert the metric just fine on my own, Doctor." Borda frowned. "Temperatures like that would make the cockpit extremely uncomfortable, but built in regulating devices would alleviate a lot of that. Armored vehicles in desert environments hit temperatures like that all the time. I'm not seeing the problem."

"Cockpit heat is only the beginning," the doctor explained. "Most of the heat is centered around the reactor itself, directly in the heart of the vehicle. Though in this instance the machine's built-in heat sinks seem to be able to handle it, imagine what could happen if it mounted more 'hot' weaponry. The reactor would likely heat up to the point of meltdown."

"Your saying they've built their Mechs around unstable nuclear reactors?" he exclaimed, eyes widening. "Are they insane?"

"It's not unstable. The reactors likely have safety protocols that shut them down if they're about to overheat or are critically damaged," Tessa explained reassuringly. "Even if they don't, reactors aren't bombs. Even the most violent fusion meltdown only has the same yield as the average fuel air explosive."

"Captain Testarossa is correct. ComStar's reactors are no more dangerous than our own. Their heat issues are a glaring weakness, but not a crippling one," said Doctor Painrose. "This is weakness is important, however, when combined with the Battlemech's other flaw: mobility."

The video changed to a promotional photograph. A French Mistral II was posed at parade rest, but was completely dwarfed by the huge machine behind it. It was humanoid, but the nine meter-tall Mistral only came up to its waist. Its torso was built like a slab, with a domed, skull-like head hunched between its massive shoulders. Thick arms hung downward, ending in fists that looked closer to hammers than hands.

"This is the Atlas. It weighs a hundred tons and as you can see, is over sixteen meters tall," Painrose announced. "This particular variant mounts twenty long range missiles, six short range missiles, four medium range lasers, and a single two hundred millimeter cannon. It also has a top speed of about forty kilometers per hour. To compare, the Rk-92 Savage can easily clear one hundred kilometers per hour on open ground. Our M9s can do considerably better."

"At that weight, its joints must be completely reinforced," Tessa mused aloud, the voices beginning to whisper in her head as she studied the towering Mech. "Using armor as a structural support wouldn't be possible at that size. It would have to use an endoskeleton with charged myomers to for movement, like in an Arm Slave. Internal structure is likely ultra-light foamed aluminum in directionally oriented stressed silicon carbide mono-filament fiber sheets with-"

General Amit coughed loudly, breaking the near hypnotic hold the Mech's image had put on her. She blinked in surprise, and desperately tried to hide her embarrassment.

"I apologize for interrupting," she muttered with a slight bow. "I'm not sure what came over me."

"The same thing that came over the last three Whispered we showed these images to, I suspect," Painrose stated with a slight grin. "It merely reinforces what we already suspected: Battlemechs are derived from Black Technology, just like Arm Slaves. ComStar has at least one strong Whispered working for them. Considering the sheer variety and depth of their technology, I suspect they actually have several."

"All that work to keep the Whispered from becoming pawns in a nationalist arms race, and now they're becoming pawns in an independent one," Lord Mallory said with a heavy sigh. "Well, it can't be helped. Doctor, please continue with what you were saying."

"Thank you. With the exception of several small scout types, most Mechs have top speeds well below those of Arm Slaves, and possess terrible maneuverability. As I mentioned previously, their heavy armament and large mass makes them closer to walking tanks than they are to Third or even Second Generation Arm Slaves."

"So they're bigger and slower than our units," mused Admiral Borda. "How much reach do those lasers have?"

"Depends on the type of laser," Painrose replied. "The medium variant is the most common, and has a range of about two kilometers. But we estimate that diffusion will reduce its efficiency at any range over a kilometer. The largest lasers can hit at over three kilometers."

"I see. How much damage can they do?"

"Again, it depends. At optimum range, a medium laser has about the same impact as a fifty millimeter cannon. Most Mech designs mount them in groups of two or four."

"I see. So, in your professional opinion, how would our field units fair against something like that?" Mallory asked, gesturing at the Atlas' hovering image.

"In one on one combat? Poorly," Painrose said with brutal honesty. "The Atlas is a monster. According to the data they've released, the armor alone weighs more than two M9s put together. It also has another unique property that will neutralize most of our more advanced weapons."

"Oh?"

The image changed again, shifting to another video from Ahmedabad. A Savage was firing into the approaching bulk of a slender, humanoid Mech, and was able to get off a good burst before the heavy cannon in the Mech's arm tore it in half. As the UAV continued its orbit, several pits and craters could be seen where the Savage's bullets had struck the Mech. The video froze and then zoomed in.

"The standard loadout for a Savage is a 37mm assault rifle. If its shells weren't powerful enough to penetrate the armor, we would normally expect them to bounce off and leave the armor mostly untouched. But they didn't. This is because instead of normal plate, BattleMech use a complex form of ablative armor. This armor makes them almost completely immune to most high-tech penetrators. The only way through the armor is to remove it with brute force. The upside to this is that virtually all of our conventional weapons will have at least some effect. Even lighter weapons, like heavy machineguns, would probably be enough to do some damage to the armor."

"Why would they pick a system like that?" Borda wondered. "An armor than almost anything can chip away seems counterproductive."

"It's likely a response to advanced antitank weaponry," Painrose reasoned. "The ARX-7's Boxer Scattershot gun is only 57mm, but thanks to its HEAT ammunition, it can easily take out a main battle tank. Similarly, aircraft-mounted missiles like the American Hellfire also use HEAT warheads. The ablative armor on BattleMechs seems specifically designed to neutralize these weapons. In a sense, this armor has dragged anti-vehicle weaponry back over sixty years."

"So the best weapon against a Mech would be high caliber cannons?"

"Or massed fire from smaller weapons, yes. Even then, they can take a frightening amount of damage. Observe."

A new video appeared, showing a smaller Mech. Tessa recognized this one from Kurtz Weber's report, and a superimposed label helpfully named it as a JR7-D Jenner. Sleek and lean, it was just a tiny bit shorter than an M9 and obviously built for speed. As she watched, an M-1 Abrams in Egyptian colors rolled into view, spinning its turret to face the Mech. The Abrams fired, its 120mm cannon sending a single shot streaking into the Jenner's side. It rocked slightly under the impact, but otherwise seemed relatively unharmed. Undaunted, the tank fired again. Again, the Mech took the shot without flinching, but this time it turned its torso ninety degrees and fired all four of its lasers into the Abrams' turret. The tank's armor glowed and melted, before the lasers caught its fuel tank and sent the vehicle up in a spectacular fireball.

"That was what ComStar considers to be a 'light' Mech. The Jenner is one of the more poorly armored Mechs in their arsenal, and can reach speeds of up to one hundred and fifty kilometers per hour," the doctor stated flatly, but Tessa was barely listening. Something about that video was pricking at her mind and sending the voices Whispering again. "The one we saw previously, the Centurion, mounts almost twice as much armor."

"Christ. I thought you said these things were slow!"

"I said most of them were. Light scout Mechs like the Jenner are extremely quick, and many utilize a specialized system of internal jets to…"

She could hear the voices continuing to drone in the background, but tuned them out. Something was bothering her, something she couldn't quite grasp. The Whispers were coming again, barraging her with random facts from ComStar's PR releases as it tried to lead her to a conclusion. The AS7-D's right torso mounts a 200mm autocannon. The CPLT-K2's primary weapons are large arm-mounted particle cannons. Long range missiles are typically fired in groups of ten or more…

What did ComStar need all this firepower for, wondered the tactical portion of her brain. A single fifty or one hundred millimeter cannon would be enough to destroy any Arm Slave in current service. Why load down their Mechs with so much extra firepower, when lighter Mechs were obviously much faster and more maneuverable? The only things that would require so many weapons to engage would be naval ships and…other Mechs.

"They're trying to make Arm Slaves obsolete," she announced firmly, cutting off Doctor Painrose in the process. The room went completely silent.

"An interesting conclusion," Lord Mallory said with a smile. "What makes you say that?"

"The primary advantage of the Arm Slave has always been its maneuverability. Tanks are slow and cumbersome, and thanks advanced anti-armor technology even infantry can take out most modern battle tanks," Tessa began with conviction. "Arm Slaves are faster and their additional maneuverability allows them to successfully fight in environments where a normal vehicle would be useless. Helmajistan proved it. But now all that means nothing."

"You aren't talking about the Battlemechs," said Painrose shrewdly. "You mean the lasers."

"Yes, I do. Lasers make maneuverability useless. The only possible way to defend against that kind of attack is through extremely thick armor, just like what they mount on their Mechs."

"Wouldn't it also be possible to move faster than your opponent can track? Even lasers still have to line their barrels up to the target," reasoned Borda, but from the smile on his face, Tessa suspected he already knew she already had an answer.

"It is currently possible to avoid the laser by outmaneuvering the pilot aiming it. Mechs are still very slow and clumsy. But what about in five years? Or ten? The Battlemechs we're seeing are first or second generation models. Look at the difference between an M6 and an M9. Lasers will only improve from here. Their mounts will become faster and more maneuverable, their range will increase. If a counter to lasers can't be found, Arm Slaves will likely be obsolete within the next twenty years.

"We've seen almost a dozen different Battlemechs, and according to their PR documentation, each of those has at least two or three variants." she continued, gaining momentum. "Why make so many different units? It's faster and cheaper to just pick two or three and mass produce them. The only possible answer is that they don't know what to build. They don't know what will work yet."

"If they are using their deployments as live-fire tests, we can expect them to jump at every mission they can get," General Amit warned with a frown. "They'll need data for as many environments and mission types as possible. I highly doubt the UN Security Council will be able to get the consensus they'd need for even half those assignments."

"Then I suppose the real question will be how ComStar will deal with such restrictions," Mallory said grimly.

"So why the big guns?" asked Admiral Borta, returning them to their original topic. "You don't need that kind of firepower to fight Savages and Mistrals."

"They're for fighting other Battlemechs. ComStar is a derivative of the UN, so now that they're in the open, they won't be able to hide their technology. That's probably why they're being so free with their press releases right now. They know that superpowers like the Americans and Russians are going to be demanding it all soon anyway. I would imagine both sides are prototyping their own Mechs as we speak."

"And why wouldn't they just mount lasers on their existing Arm Slaves?" Amit asked skeptically. "It would be easier and faster."

"Second generation Arm Slaves don't have the power output required to use a laser of any significant size," said Painrose. "A third generation might be able to do it, but the weapon would have to plug directly into the reactor. The exposed cables and the reactor dock itself would be huge weak points for any unit not specifically designed with armor to protect those areas. On top of that, the precision nature of lasers allows them to shoot the gun right out of an Arm Slave's hands. They aren't armored, so it would be the easiest thing to damage. That's probably why ComStar's Mechs use internal weapons rather than hand-held ones."

"They're creating an arms race they already have a head start in," Tessa agreed. "If ComStar can prove that there's no future for Arm Slaves, nations will be forced to develop their own Mechs. But ComStar will always be one step ahead of them. They won't have the numbers to take on larger nations, but as long as they have the best technology, they can at least be guaranteed to have the advantage in the short term."

"Then they're going to be coming for us," Borta warned. "Maybe not directly, but it's an open secret that Mithril has some of the best equipment in the world. They'll have to prove that their Mechs are superior to our M9s. ComStar will be trying to take away as many of our contracts as they can."

"They'll be able to count on support from a lot of major players as well, at least in the short term," Amit added. "Since they're attached to the UN Security Council, nations like Russia and the United States will be able to veto any future missions from the outset. It's a sword that can never be wielded against them, but one they can use against any minor nations acting counter to their interests. They'll obviously prefer to use ComStar rather than rely on us."

"Battlemech technology is still in its infancy," Painrose stated. "Several early defeats could very well break national faith in its viability."

"Then it would appear that the next few months will be critical." Lord Mallory straightened formally. "Conflict of some sort with ComStar appears to be inevitable. If we are to succeed, every member of this organization will need to perform their best. Captain Testarossa, the responsibility for much of this will fall onto regional commanders such as yourself. Are you and your subordinates up for the challenge?"

"Yes sir, we are."

"Excellent. As a matter of fact, Captain, there is a mission your battlegroup's particular skills might be well suited for…"


End file.
